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Yes, you read that right. Vegan macaroni & cheese! Who doesn’t love macaroni & cheese? It was one of the staples in our house before going vegan. And I don’t mean that nasty instant junk from a box! So I was ecstatic when one of my Instagram friends sent me the link for the recipe of vegan macaroni & cheese that they use. We made it and, guess what? It’s so delicious!! I will go so far as to say that, even if I decided not to be vegan any more, I would prefer this vegan macaroni & cheese to the traditional one made with cheese, butter and milk!

If you read my blog regularly or know how I cook, you know I’m not good at following a recipe as it is written. I tried to follow the original recipe as closely as possible the first time I made it. Especially since this vegan thing is still relatively new to me. If you want to see the VegNews recipe, click here. We liked it, but decided we would change a few things the next time we made it. I don’t usually have shallots on hand, nor are they easy to find, so something else would have to be used. We have also never been the baked macaroni & cheese people. Why waste time and electricity baking when you can just eat it warm from the pot?

The following recipe is a variation of the original. I decided to use things that I always have on hand and to leave out the breadcrumb topping that causes it to require baking. I think pasta with breadcrumb topping is a bit redundant with the carbs. While I’m not a carb-o-phobe, I was always taught that you don’t eat pasta, rice, bread or potatoes together in the same meal. The breadcrumb topping also adds extra fat with the margarine. So just skip it and make your vegan macaroni & cheese healthier and less complicated. And you’ll notice that there are no cheese alternatives used in the VegNews recipe or mine.

1/2 cup of nutritional yeast (A.K.A. nooch, which is also optional, but we love it, so we use it. If you don’t use the nooch, reduce the water to cook the vegetables in the saucepan to 2 cups)

What You Do:

Make the macaroni first. In a large pot, bring the 4 quarts of water and 1 tablespoon of salt to a boil. Add macaroni and cook according to package directions. Drain pasta in a colander and rinse with cold water. Set aside.

Next, in a saucepan, add red onion, garlic, potatoes, carrots, red bell pepper, and water, and bring to a boil. Cover the pan and simmer for 15 minutes, or until vegetables are very soft.

In a food processor, process the cashews, salt, garlic, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, turmeric, black pepper, cayenne and nutritional yeast, if using. This will be really thick. Once the vegetables are ready in the saucepan, add them to the food processor and process until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed to make sure everything is well incorporated.

Pour the sauce into the pot you boiled the macaroni noodles in and add the macaroni noodles and stir until all of the noodles are covered in the sauce. Serve and enjoy!!

We love eating our vegan macaroni & cheese with steamed broccoli. What’s your favorite pair to macaroni & cheese? I’m thinking about making this again and subbing some of the potato or carrot for sweet potato. I have also been thinking about throwing some fresh baby spinach in the food processor part. Always looking for ways to add more nutrition, while keeping it delicious. Let me know if you make this recipe. I would love to know your thoughts and if you changed anything. You may leave a comment below or tag me on your photos by following Organic Andrea on:

Besides boiling water, how much more basic can you get than scrambled eggs? I’m not that big of a fan of eggs by themselves, therefore, I try to find new ways to eat eggs that make them more palatable to me. With this grain-free, dairy-free, sugar-free eating that I’m doing these days, eggs have become an essential part of my diet. I have noticed that my body craves more protein now that I have cut out sugar, grains and dairy. It’s always important to listen to the queues our bodies give us.

With summer’s heat blazing on, there is a bounty of fresh in-season vegetables available. I decided to take advantage of the vegetables that I had in my kitchen and make a scrambled egg invention. It turned out marvelously! In the past month, I have eaten this at one point or another for breakfast, lunch or dinner, but not all on the same day. This recipe provides a good dose of protein as well as more than one serving of vegetables. And it’s really great, because it will keep you satisfied and energized for hours. This recipe makes one large serving for one person as a complete meal, or it can be the main course at a meal with a variety of other sides. It would also be a great addition to a breakfast or brunch buffet!

Heat oil in a large (cast iron, if you have it) skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and sauté for about 5 minutes. Add zucchini and mushrooms and salt to taste and continue to cook for about another 5 minutes. Stir in the spinach and tomatoes. While this cooks, beat your eggs with the water and salt to taste. I beat the heck out of my eggs in a glass bowl with a fork. I’m convinced that this makes my eggs lighter and fluffier. Pour the eggs over the skillet full of sautéed vegetables and use a silicone spatula to stir it around. At this point, you might want to put a lid on your skillet and then open it to stir it occasionally until all the eggs are cooked. Once all the eggs are cooked, plate, sit and eat. Bon appétit!

Have you tried this recipe? Do you have an even better recipe for scrambled eggs that is also dairy-free? Let yourself be heard in the comments section below!